Identity Reloaded
by Replica Velocity a.k.a. X5 714
Summary: Discontinued. Will never be getting repicked up. Early Allison Lightning work.


Okay I don't own Dark Angel, wish I did but I don't.

This story is about Rae/X5478 a character of my own. It will have Max/Logan,

Rae/Alec. This fic begin in 2009.Firstpart mainly Rae's view future chapters will include all characters point of view. Spoilers for Max Collins book 'Before the Dawn'. And 411 on the DL

Identity 

Chapter One.

_Manticore- Gillette, Wyoming 2009._

4 hours before the Escape

It was in between training sessions that it had happened. The once twenty child soldiers that compromised nineteen of Unit 2, Zack, Rava, Seth, Tinga, Mina, Zane, Cory, Jace, Ben, Brin, Kite, Jondy, Syl, Eva, Max, Krit, Lin, Rae, and Kavi. (In age order).

It had been horror that Jack's death had been received by the close knit unit. The idea that one of their own had been laid down on the table and dissected like a laboratory specimen, with Colonel Lydecker drinking coffee watching- just for a seizure, well and truly wrong. The main argument was what to do next Zack and Jace determined to get their view across.

" Anyone of us could be next. I think we should take direct action in response " said Zack determined that no more of their number would fall by Manticore's hand. Jace shook her head in disagreement.

"Jack could have died as result of the seizures-" the older X-5 was cut of by Rae. Even though Rae was the youngest female in the group she was the team strategist, possessing an ability far exceeding even the transgenics designed for strategy. Light green eyes flashed as she contradicted her older sister.

"Those were not fatal seizures, and there is a slim to none chance that even a ordinary would die from that type of seizure. More likely the scientists leaped for the chance to 'test' one of us". As Rae spoke is was calm and assessing not betraying her underlying feelings.

Zack nodded decisively. Across the room Max and Jondy were separate from their other siblings.

Jondy looked worried at Max who was slightly shaking.

"Maxie, are you all right?" asked Jondy in concern. Then to her sister's horror Max collapsed and began to seizure. Everyone rushed to Max's side.

" Is Max going to be killed"? Asked Kavi pulling on Rae's sleeve. Rae shook her head and looked at Zack.

The young C/O looked in horror. His baby sister was going to be taken away from him and killed. To confirm the fears of the unit one of the transgenic holders entered the room and walked towards them his stun stick at the ready.

Eva leaped up and killed the man with one decisive blow to the neck. The man died instantly his body sprawled on the ground. By this point Max had stopped seizing and they looked at Eva who looked at Zack.

Eva picked up the man's gun and stared at her brothers and sisters. "Are we going to let them kill Max, or are we going to save her?"

Zack stood decisively and gave the order. "Let's go".

Eva took the lead. Zack and Tinga supported Max as they all passed the dead body. Max caught sight of Jace who shook her head and stayed still backing away. The other eighteen left the hallway and entered a double reflected hallway. As they were almost at the door Colonel Lydecker entered holding a gun followed by similarly armed military personnel. Rae gripped Brin's arm in pure fright as Eva brought up the gun.

"Put down the gun Eva," warned Colonel Lydecker quietly. Eva scowled and tightened her grip on the gun.

Then Lydecker pulled the trigger. To Max it seemed to happen in slow motion as Eva's now lifeless body fell to the ground in front of them. Then Max looked slowly up at Colonel Lydecker. Every sound at that moment seemed to be amplified a million times.

Rae was shaking with silent tears and Zack was grinding his teeth.

"Return to your barracks Unit Two" ordered Lydecker. As they walked away, Max was exploding inside. Colonel Lydecker had been a father figure to them, a protector. He had shot one of their own. As they entered the room, Jace was sitting on a bed. The young ethnic skinned X-5 looked up.

"I thought you were getting Max out of here… where is Eva? ".

Zack scowled at Jace. "You did not come with us Jace, you were too scared and guess what Eva is dead!". Jace shook her head shocked and confused.

"No, you are lying Zack!" Jace screamed at her older brother.

"Then maybe you would like to go out there and see your sister dead on the floor shot by Colonel Lydecker", continued Zack.

"And Max will be next if we do not do something, then whoever gets it next, so we are going to leave".

Everyone stared at Zack.

Seth spoke first the shock entering his voice as Seth wondered wiether or not his brother Zack should be in with the nomilies. " Do you mean _escape_? ".

Zack nodded assertingly. "Yes". There was no hesitation in his voice.

"To what? "Asked Mina her gray eyes half closed. "Where would we go that would be safe? Colonel Lydecker would hunt us down for the rest of our lives. We would never know peace, be captured one by one until we are either dead or in a cage". Mina's dramatic statement was an eerie premonition of what was to come.

"Zack is right". Everyone turned to the eldest female X-5 in amazement at her statement. Rava put her hands on her hips. Of all the transgenics, Rava was the most stubborn of them all, a lot like Eva had been.

Krit frowned at his oldest sister. "How do you work that out? ".

Rava walked around the simple bland no frill barrack taking the scene in before she awnsered as if preparing for battle.

"Because, how long after they take Max will the next one of us get the shakes?. Or drown in the tank, get hit by friendly fire like Tien or get shot by Colonel Lydecker like Eva. This is our best chance to survive and be ourselves. Imagine never being called a number again." When Rava had finished her little speech it made sense. And it was decided.

"We go tonight", said Zack. "For Eva, Jack and Tien".

-

_22 hundred Hours._

Rae sat in a corner in the dark. It had been lights out for half an hour, and the young transgenic was sitting quietly, worried.

How in the hell were they ever going to pull this off? The odds were against them a million to one yet there was no alternative. If they didn't go tonight. After Eva's attempt it had been decided that unit would go to psy-ops. They had no other choice, tonight or never.

" Hey Rae", a voice whispered softly.

Brin joined her sister in the corner, the Asian girl unnaturally still. Brin was the little acrobat of the group and hate staying still.

Rae's voice was all choked up when she awnsered. Brin and Rae knew each other too well to ever pretend everything was okay to each other. Best friends and sisters.

"What if something goes wrong, or we get separated, big sister I don't want to be alone on the outside".

Brin held her sister.

"Even if we get separated, baby girl I promise I will find you so we can be together. Nobody can change the fact that I will find you. Manticore can not keep us apart ", murmured Brin into Rae's ear.

"Nothing can keep us apart, not even the blue lady ".

" The blue lady wouldn't keep us apart". Said a serious young boy's voice. It was Ben. He sat down to join the two sisters in their little corner.

For a long moment Rae, Brin and Ben sat like that, knowing that this would probably be their last time as a unit. Or together.

Then came Zack's whispered voice, out of the darkness. The command that would begin the escape. "It's time".

Eighteen lined up in front, ready to crash the window. Jace hung back. Zack cleared his voice. " We will rondvue at the midway point at the fallen tree from last week".

Everyone tensed as Zack made hand signals counting down.

Three, Two, One.

A crashing noise filled the night air as glass shards rained down with the X-5 unit. Everyone took of for the woods, alarms piercing and loud. Max looked back to see Jace at the window shaking her head.

There was no time, Max ran off leaving the building and Jace behind.

-

Rae ran into the woods alongside Brin and Ben. Despite the cold air and her light Manticore hospital gown, Rae ran perfectly as if it was a Californian summer rather than a snowstorm in the middle of winter. Brin was faring even better a natural athlete, and apart from as Ben was running his murmurs about the blue lady, he was not going badly either.

The trio arrived at the point barely half a minute after Zack, Seth and Tinga. Hiding behind the branch they waited as the others arrived. Everyone was there but Max.

Jondy fidgeted nervously for a second but stopped when finally Max turned up.

Everyone circled around Zack as he told them in military code the next step, which was to get out of here and then go to ground.

Max shook her head in disagreement but Zack convinced her with a look. Brin and Rae were paired and ran off towards the perimeter fence.

The trees seemed to fly past for Rae as she and Brin got closer to the fence. They stopped seeing Mina and Kavi about a hundred metres along. A bullet whizzed pass from a bush to their left and Mina collapsed clutching her leg.

Rae flew in the air and jumped on the special ops solider knocking him out. The young X-5 joined Brin who was trying to help Mina get up who was resisting.

" There is no way I will make the fence now, do not get yourselves captured on my account ". Brin looked torn but a look at Kavi changed her mind. If Brin remained there the only thing that would happen was that all four of them would get captured.

"Rae I need you to go ahead in the direction we were going, I am going to get Kavi out the east way".

Rae shook her head. "I don't want to leave you"; she pleaded terrified at being all alone. Without her sibs, in a whole big cold world.

"I promised, I will find you baby sister", started Brin. "Now go and don't look back".

Rae bit her lip and turned and ran on towards the fence, which loomed in front of her like a wall taunting her that she would never be free. Rae ran backward and ran full throttle at the fence and leaped.

-

X5-unit 332960073478 felt a slight thump on the ground as she landed on the other side of the fence.

The young nine-year-old girl looked briefly over the fence towards her past, the only life she had known. There were sounds of gunshots and screaming.

For so long Rae had wondered what was on the other side, wondered what the world was like. A world of red balloons and no schedules. A life free of Manticore and Colonel Lydecker

But this was not how she had wanted to find out.

Colonel Lydecker had shot Eva just for defending Max and she would never come back. Never challenge the rules or do things in her own way no matter who told Eva not to. Because of him.

The very person all of her brother and sisters had trusted in the whole world. And now without her family Rae didn't know whom to trust.

Rae barely felt the cold as she ran to the road to put as much distance between her and the compound filled with her nightmares and pain. Rae ran for about 3 km before she began to feel tired and her focus was not crystal clear.

A car just missed Rae and she berated herself. The car a sleek silver one very unlike the Manticore army trucks and humvees stopped and backed up. A man leaned out of the window and Rae saw a young boy in the car.

The man opened the door and looked kindly at her.

" Don't worry, I'm going to help you get away" Rae was suspicious. This man could be working for the colonel but then she saw a regular teenage boy in the backseat who has a resemblance to the man most likely his son. If this man would be aware of her nature and let her in a car with his son than it was safe to assume it was not a trap.

'Who are you" asked. Rae, it was good to know who you are dealing with at all times that's what her instructors had taught her. Even if the man seemed okay.

"I'm Michael Cale and", the man said pointing to the young boy" This is my son Logan. I know you are from Manticore but I'm going to help you get away. You can be part of my family".

Rae was puzzled.

Rae knew it was like how she felt about her brothers and sisters. But why would this Michael want to feel that about her. What could this man have to gain from such an event?

"Why would you want to do that for me? "

Michael interrupted her.

"Because you are a young girl who is looking for a home, somewhere safe and we want a little girl to call our own. My wife and I cannot have any children". Michael fell quiet, staring at the road at the realization that he had not asked the girl if she had wanted that.

Rae closed her eyes. A chance at a normal life….

"That is…" stammered Michael suddenly sounding like a child, "If you want to?".

The young X-5 surprised herself by letting her emotions do the talking rather than her head for once.

"I would like that very much ", awnsered Rae.

With that sentence started a new life for Rae she grew up with this new family, having a childhood that the X-5 had never had. Seven years from then Michael and Tara Cale died. Logan went on to become Eyes Only crusading against all things wrong and Rae looked for her brothers and sisters and the awnsers to her past.

Seattle, 2019.

Rae groaned, of all the surprises her brother could have given her it had to be go to this Loser messenger service called Jam Pony, get a job and she would love him forever?

Please! Being Eyes only must have gone to her brother's head. Then occasionally he did have bad ideas. Like marrying Valerie Johnston. Rae shuddered thinking of the former alcoholic who was back in town. Then again Rae had never said 'I told you so' but then Uncle Jonas did that for her. Rae shook her head, her light brown long hair shifting as she shook it.

Rae wouldn't of even went if Logan hadn't asked if she was scared of a little hard work in her life, and with this thought she entered Jam Pony.

The just nineteen year old transgenic just shook her head. Sometimes Rae could swear Logan gave her assignments that would just annoy her.

Rae went up to the front desk or what appeared to be the front desk in this dive, and this guy looked at her and said "And why are you here and who are you"

"I'm here to apply for a job" started Rae already not liking this guy with the chauvinistic, egotistical attitude.

The guy was opening his mouth to start being annoying again when a female's voice started on the guy.

"Normal, don't scare people" Rae turned to see two women her own age one who had brunette curls and large brown eyes which were familiar and a black chick with by the way she dressed screamed attitude.

Normal scowled at the brunette and turned to Rae.

"Any qualifications?"

Rae anticipated what Normal was going to do next.

"I went to University, fast track."

Normal composed himself quickly but not quick enough for Rae to miss the shock in his eyes. Score one for the transgenic, zero for the village idiot.

"You have the job as long as you have a bike".

Rae showed him her bike, not without a smug grin on her face.

"Well then, MAX,"he yelled, "Do something useful and show this new girl around.

The brunette motioned to Rae and she followed her and the black chick who shrugged and walked off.

Rae turned to Max; this was the person she was supposed to show her barcode to? If this was Logan's idea of a big joke that cyber journalist of a brother was dead.

"Max, can we talk outside alone for a second, I promise I will be quick"

Max was puzzled what did this new girl who she did not even know want with her? She followed Rae outside; to what originally was the courtyard but now looked like an earthquake meets the tip.

"There is something I want to show you, Logan said this was important ".

Rae turned around and lifted her hair revealing to Max her barcode.

I am so sorry for the length of time this took. This is a rewrite and will go past chapter four I promise you that. Will update by next Sunday. Again I am very very sorry. Please read and review. The original story is in my profile.

Allison


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